THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, November 17, 1995 TAG: 9511170671
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 02 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Road Warrior
LENGTH: Long : 130 lines
You have to love modern technology.
Road has no idea who called to say what this week because Infoline, the voice mail service used to collect your comments and gripes, was experiencing technical difficulties.
That means Road must dip into the mailbag as well as a tall stack of papers to find something worthy of mention.
Ah, here we go. . . . Anyone job hunting? The Virginia State Police are looking for a few good men and women to become troopers.
They're accepting state applications through Dec. 1. They should be mailed to the Personnel Department, Virginia State Police Administrative Headquarters, P.O. Box 27472, Richmond, Va. 23261-7472. Faxed applications won't be accepted. The starting salary is $22,931.
Here's another good bit of information. . . . The State Police have announced that vehicle inspection stickers and inserts have been redesigned. The new stickers are supposed to stick better and are a different size. The stickers have already been delivered to inspection stations across the state, so don't be surprised if your inspection sticker doesn't seem the same.
And, since we seem to be on the police beat this week. . . . It's a little early yet, but Road's asking Thanksgiving travelers to beware.
The State Police will be patrolling the state highways as part of Operation CARE (Combined Accident Reduction Effort) beginning Wednesday until the holiday weekend is over.
That means more cops on the roads, more speeding tickets written, and, best of all, more drunks thrown in jail.
Last year, 17 motorists lost their lives statewide over the Thanksgiving weekend.
If you drink and drive, you could be a part of this year's tally. So don't!
SNARLS OF THE WEEK
The following person called Road on Infoline several weeks ago.
Kimberly, no address given. Just wondering when the Virginia Department of Transportation's going to fix the striping and drainage problems on Route 44. My husband was driving in a downpour last week and you couldn't see the lanes at all.
RW: Road got this same question from someone just two weeks ago. VDOT says that the roads are routinely lined and maintenance performed every six months or so. It could be that because Route 44 is undergoing the change from toll to non-toll road that they're trying to hold off relining it until all the work is finished. When Road talked to officials at VDOT, they said that they'd go out and see if those lines need to go ahead and be repainted now rather than later.
The following people wrote to Road.
Dear Road,
Just one small question, on Route 44 as you approach the site of the old tollbooths, the signs stating, ``Trucks, Campers and Oversized Vehicles Use Right Lane'' (to go through the tollbooths with no roof) are still up there in both east and westbound lanes. Are they EVER going to take them down?
R.W. Reeks
N. Woodhouse Road
RW: True, the signs are still up in all their glory.
Road wonders if maybe they'll stay up because there are plans to build a weigh station and typically, right lanes are safer for big vehicles to drive in, especially if they're slower.
You've got Road's curiosity up on this one so as soon as Road gets an official answer from VDOT, I'll let you know what it is.
Of course, if the signs come down, you'll know the answer even sooner.
Dear Road Warrior,
What cellular phone number is best to contact authorities when I see someone broken down on the side of the road? 911?
G.H.
Virginia Beach
RW: You'll get differing opinions on this one. Some folks think a call to 911 will do because it is rerouted to the State Police. However, if you call 424-6800 you'll get the State Police directly. Either one should work though.
Dear Road Warrior,
Help. Our office is located at the intersection of 34th Street and Pacific Avenue and we see and hear a lot of accidents happen.
How many are ``enough'' before a traffic light will be installed? Or, does there have to be a fatality before the city takes a better look?
Not to mention that in the summer months it is almost an impossibility to turn left onto Pacific Avenue. The reroute for people in the ``know'' is Holly Road to the 47th Street light.
Thanks for any help you can extract from the traffic engineering department.
Doris M. Addenbrook
Beach Travel Service Inc.
RW: There's a study under way called the Pacific Avenue Corridor Study and it addresses the need for improvements along Pacific Avenue. This study may show that an additional light is needed somewhere between 31st Street and where Atlantic Avenue merges with Pacific. Of course, none of this is official and the study won't be finished and released until December. But, as it stands now, this study is the only thing that may net you guys a new light out there anytime soon.
Dear Road Warrior,
Would you please see what you can do to get a leading green (arrow) traffic light at the intersection of Old Kempsville Road and Kemps River Drive? Traffic backs up really bad on the Kemps River Drive side. There is traffic turning left off Indian River Road onto Kemps River Drive, traffic coming out of the Kemps River Shopping Center turning right on Kemps River Drive, plus the strip shopping center on Kemps River Drive. Also, there are cars trying to get out of the post office parking lot.
By the time the light turns green, traffic is coming off of Old Kempsville and crossing over Kempsville Road to get onto Kemps River Drive. This leaves no time to turn left onto Kempsville Road.
JoAnn H.
Kempsville
RW: Engineers also received a call about this area from a kind gentleman who mirrored your complaint so they decided to go out and sit and watch how the light cycle was working. An engineer sat near the intersection during a peak time, 5 p.m., and noticed that there were about 15 cars on Kemps River waiting to go left onto Kempsville.
However, there were only two or three cars on Old Kempsville Road wanting to go straight across to Kemps River. He says that each light cycle cleared most if not all left-turners onto Kempsville each time. Granted, if you're coming up on the light at the tail end, you'll probably have to wait another light cycle to get through. But, seeing as 12 to 15 cars are getting through the light cycle each time, that's not a bad average and engineers say the light's working as it should. MEMO: Tell the Road Warrior about your motoring problems. Get 'em off your
chest. Call on Infoline, at 640-5555. After a brief message, dial ROAD
(7623). When directed, press 1 to deliver your message, and 1 again to
sign off.
Or, write: The Road Warrior, Virginia Beach Beacon, 4565 Virginia
Beach Blvd., Virginia Beach, Va. 23462.
Don't forget to include your name, address and neighborhood.
by CNB